I get homesick a lot. I live nearly 1,000 miles from where I grew up, and sometimes it feels like 1,000,000. I knew all my neighbors—heck, I think I was related to half the town. Now I don’t even know my next door neighbors’ names. So I spend a lot of time talking to writers […]
I've been reading a lot, and thinking about some of the books I've read brings me to my next pet peeve. Settings in fiction. Please be patient with me on this one. I know setting a scene is necessary. But there is a right and a wrong way to do it.
The Many Worlds interpretation, or the idea that every time an event could have gone one of two different ways, it goes both—in different universes. Put another way, when there's a decision to be made, every possible outcome occurs somewhere.
Some of the authors I admire most use setting as a literary technique. A storm becomes a metaphor for tension between characters. The seasons serve as symbols within the theme. Temperatures create mood from humid heat to frigid cold. Place—from sea to river to urban environs—expresses as much about mood as does a character’s words and actions.
Here’s a short story starring Franki and Gianni. This takes place after the end of Bleeding Heart. (Part way through Mind Control, actually, although this won’t be found in that book.) I hope you enjoy it. Fireworks Aren’t Always in the Sky Franki stood on the travertine-tiled patio and rubbed her arms against the night chill. Weather in […]
No Category
This series is inspired by stories my grandfather told me of his heritage. (Not the paranormal part, mind you; the Italian part. As usual, I veered away from my initial inspiration.) This is a saga about four sisters who discover they are Medici descendants, the warriors sworn to protect them, and the diabolical forces determined […]
This Sunday is International Day of Peace. The United Nations created this holiday in 1981, and in 2002, they declared it a permanent holiday. Every year, on September 21, the UN urges peace for all people and the cessation of hostilities across the globe. Some people love the UN, some people hate it, but regardless […]
I thought I’d mix things up a little bit, and talk about books this month. Sure, you can go online and find hundreds of reviews for books by Stephen King, Nora Roberts, James Patterson… If an author is already a NYTBSA, he or she hardly needs a book review from me. But what about the […]